AIRC Update: They’re baaaack! GOP Fair Trust threatens to sue the AIRC

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Arizona Republic reports today that the secretive GOP redistricting organization FAIR Trust and its lawyer/lobbyist David Cantelme has sent "a letter" to Attorney General Tom Horne indicating FAIR Trust is "contemplating" a lawsuit over the new maps. Lawsuits over Arizona redistrict map possible.

Apparently this was not a Notice of Claim pursuant to A.R.S. Section 12-821.01 sent to the state of Arizona, but a request for waiver of conflict of interest from Mr. Cantelme (see below).

The Arizona Republic also reports that House Speaker Andy Tobin on Thursday said he is still working on plans to ask the Legislature to sue over the new legislative map. We've been over this — Tobin cannot use state money to pursue purely partisan litigation. If Tea-Publicans want to litigate over redistricting, they are going to have to spend their own money. Damn deadbeats! Always looking for taxpayer handouts.

Steve Muratore has more at The Arizona Eagletarian: Redistricting — UNfair Trust rears it's ugly head again:

[Y]esterday Attorney General Tom Horne's office wrote to the AIRC to notify the agency that David Cantelme is considering, on behalf of UNfair Trust, suing over the Congressional and legislative maps. Last week, Cantelme had asked for a waiver of conflict of interest since he is listed as outside counsel for the State in two cases. As authorized outside counsel for the State of Arizona, he is currently precluded from suing the state, due to conflict of interest.

We already know what Cantelme's likely claim will be in the event such a lawsuit is filed. While it may not be his only claim, he will focus on how minority voting rights (Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act) were not given enough weight in the final maps.

Stay tuned.

Speaker Tobin and FAIR Trust may want to think long and hard about litigating this matter. Once you file a lawsuit, the other side is entitled to conduct discovery as well. And I know that I would be issuing a subpoena for production of all written and electronic communications, including computer hard drive storage, for all communications between the members of FAIR Trust, Arizona legislative members and staff members, like John Mills who attended almost every AIRC meeting, and the Arizona GOP Congressional caucus. I am certain there are embarrassing communications that GOP leaders do not want to see the light of day.

House Speaker Andy Tobin and his aide John Mills, who drafted their own redistricting maps in secret without any public input or even input from the GOP caucus, would be among the first witnesses I would put under the bright lights. 

From what I understand, the DOJ stands ready to intervene in any lawsuit as a party of interest and aggressively conduct this kind of discovery. I would strongly encourage the DOJ to do so — let's pull back the curtain from the secretive FAIR Trust and expose the conspirators who sought to undermine Arizona's constitutionally prescribed Independent Redistricitng Commission.

Which brings me to this related news, Steve Muratore reports that "The long awaited Arizona Supreme Court opinion – spelling out the reasoning behind its decision to reinstate Colleen Coyle Mathis to the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission in November 2011 — will be, according to an email from the court's chief communications officer, released [Friday] morning. I will post the document for all to read." The Arizona Eagletarian: Redistricting — AIRC court case info.